A series of free, public events are planned Saturday to mark the 100th anniversary of Chicago’s race riots.
They include:
• 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m: Bike tour of Bronzeville sites relevant to the riots; organized by the University of Chicago’s Center for Youth Violence Prevention. Meet at CTA Green Line stop at 35th Street; tour ends at 29th Street and the lakefront.
• 10 a.m. to noon: Chicago Race Riots Commemorative Project at Illinois Institute of Technology, 3201 S. State St. Keynote speaker is photographer/author Lee Bey. Free admission but register online.
• 12 p.m to 4 p.m. Washington Square Park, 901 N. Clark St. Readings from Carl Sandburg’s reporting on the riots and from the Chicago Commission on Race Relations’ 1922 report. Author and WBEZ reporter Natalie Moore will speak. Discussion led by Charles Whitaker, dean of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Event organized by the Newberry Library.
Several events will be at 31st Street beach, 3100 S. Lake Shore Dr.:
• 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.: Families who have lost loved ones to gun violence send roses on small boats into the lake. Organized by Good Kids Mad City.
• 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.: Dancers and other artists. Archived material from riots displayed by Chicago History Museum.
• 4 p.m.: 100 participants go into the water on flotation devices, then cross an imaginary line — the flashpoint for the 1919 riots.
• 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.: A D.J. and other performers at Good Kids Mad City’s “Peace Beach” party.
